Archive for Documenting Quilts

This is a small wall hanging that I made and quilted by hand several years ago. It is in need of a label. It has been too long ago, so it will take me a while to find the information I need for the label for this piece. It is a prime example of waiting too long to document the quilt. Without documentation or labels, the quilt does not have any information to share with the person who has the quilt in the future. My hope is that my quilts will last for many years and my hope is that the history of them will continue with them.

Below I have listed some tips for when you make your own labels using permanent ink pens. I hope it helps with your label making.

Quilt Label Tips:

Use 100% cotton, high thread count fabric for your label.

Prewash the cotton fabric to remove sizing and help the inks penetrate the fabric.

Use light colored fabric so the ink will show. White on white fabric is not a good choice. The white is painted on and the ink will not penetrate it.

Use permanent ink pens that are made for fabric such as Pigma pens. A fine point pen is less likely to bleed.

Always test a sample of the fabric and ink. This will let you know how much bleed will happen between the pen and fabric. I always heat set the permanent ink with an iron and then wait 24 hours. After waiting for 24 hours, wash the sample and you will have an idea of how well the label will hold up and whether it will bleed after washing.

Use freezer paper to stablize the label. You can draw equidistant lines on the freezer paper to give yourself guidelines for writing on the label. Iron the freezer paper waxed side to the fabric’s wrong side with a hot, dry iron.

Practice writing slowly. Use a lighter touch so the ink flows into the fabric and you can control the letters easier.

So this is the last post for January 2012. I have met my goal for January. I completed 3 OMOS (One More On the Stack). I have not completed documenting and labeling 4 quilts this month but I think January does not count since I did not add this goal until the end of the month. Maybe I will be able to catch up during February.

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“What I give to you, what I make with my hands, I share with my heart.”